audi than ever before. take advantage of exceptional values during the season of audi event. soothes you to sleep with ingredients like melatonin. it's safe with no side effects, so you wake up... ready to go. [ male announcer ] unisom natural nights. bottom of the hour now, welcome back, everyone. i'm randi kaye. >> i'm victor blackwell. thank you for starting your morning with us. here's five stories we're watching this morning. number one, the lights are starting to come back on for some families in the northeast, but not fast enough for others. five days after the storm, more than 2.5 million customers are without power across 15 states

ask d.c. it could be another week before power is fully restored while people have been lining up for hours just trying to get gas. many gas stations are still out of commission. and new york mayor michael bloomberg has canceled the new york marathon for the first time in its 42-year history. people were outraged by his earlier decision to go on with the aftermath of the storm. it wouldn't divert resources but says in a statement that the race had become controversial and divisive. number three, we're down to the last three days before the election. president obama and mitt romney campaigning across several key states this weekend. both candidates will be in colorado, ohio, iowa and virginia while romney also makes some stops in pennsylvania and new hampshire. number four, it's taking some voters up to four hours to cast their ballots in florida. one of the election's most crucial swing states. remember early voting in the sunshine state started a week later than it did in '08 because of a new state law. the republican state legislature reduced the number of early

voting days from 14 to 8. and number five, gas prices are falling across the u.s. aaa reporting the national average dropped just over a penny to $3.48 a gallon. that is the 23rd consecutive decline. prices are lowest in south carolina, where the average gallon will cost you $3.17. the images of sandy's destruction have been striking. the economic losses devastating. in addition to the homes lost because of the hurricanes. the more than 20,000 flights were canceled across north america. fedex tells "new york times" it has been struggling to find gas for its delivery trucks. the advertising company have lost $5 million because of tv disruptions and movie theaters took in only $3,000, $3,000 total in the city. the monday before that it took in $500,000. here to talk more about the economic impact of the storm is trish regan in new york.

trish is the host of "street smart" on bloomberg television. trish, thanks for being with us. it seems like economists have been torn on the impact of this storm. some say this will even out because there will be so much construction for the rebuilding effort. others say that won't be enough. it won't work for waitresses who are waiting in restaurants. how do you see this? >> i think the latter there, victor. good morning. i think the reality is that there is still going to be a lot that is lost from this economy. initial estimates right now are 30, 40, some as high as $50 billion that could be lost as a result of all of this storm activity. however, and this is what you're referring to. some economists are saying, well, you might see a pick up in building activity and homes need to be rebuilt and construction projects need to resume and, thus, you could see another $30 billion potential in construction that happens after the fact. nonetheless, as you point out, you're left with all those

economic costs in the immediate term. all those waitresses not waiting tables right now are not making tips. the movie theater that was closed in new york taking in, as you point out, $3,000 in revenue. that stuff has a snowballing effect. what it does, victor, it creates an immediately slow down in the economy that hopefully, at some point, starts to turn around. but those losses are very real and they take time to dig out from under. as far as the construction goes, yes, we will probably see more construction, but think about all the construction projects that have been put on halt. think about all the buildings in downtown manhattan that they were building for new apartment buildings that they can't work on right now because they have to deal with flooding issues and the cleanup. granted, people will come in and they will make money on the cleanup. but the overall net probably leaves the economy in more of a loss than a gain.

>> you talked about how slow this has been going. trish, the recovery has been slow and hard fought from the start. and you add sandy and all that has been interrupted. some economists say that this could mean a half percent hit to gdp. >> absolutely. >> how long will we see and feel the impact of this storm? >> depends on how quickly we can start to turn around. i think they're absolutely right. we will see an impact to gdp. the last thing we need, victor, as this economy is in a very, very fragile state. the good news here is typically when you have an event like this, things do turn around. it's not like the massive financial deleveraging process that we've been going through as an economy overall since 2008. that's a very different systematic problem. right now we're dealing with a temporarily halt which should then result in more spending after the fact. but that doesn't change the

fact, victor, that this is going to be a very difficult time. you know, this is really the last thing this economy needs right now as it's trying to mend itself. >> we just got that job's report on friday. 171,000 jobs added. the labor department said the impact of sandy was not factored into that calculation. what do you think we'll see moving into the november numbers and december numbers because of the closed businesses? are are we looking at, you know, a loss of jobs? are we looking at justeven? >> we are adding jobs to this economy. 171,000, when i heard that number, it nearly knocked me off my feet because i was looking for more in the vicinity of what most economists were anticipating, around 123. that was a big number. as you pointed out, you are absolutely right, it did not factor in sandy because that was

last month's number. what have you done for me lately and, clearly, sandy will have an impact. you know, it's to be determined because don't forget this is part of the country we're talking about, not the entire country. part of the country, of course, being affected. there will be some jobs added. for example, in construction and cleanup. but, the retail sector, the services jobs when you think of waitresses and waiters at restaurants here. some of those more service oriented industries, those are going to feel the pain. so, net net, again, it's not going to be good, but it's not going to be as awful because you will see some jobs being added for construction. >> all right, trish regan, always good to have this conversation with you and put everything in perspective. host of "street smart" on bloomberg tv from 3:00 to 5:00 eastern. thanks. sandy's storm surge was horrific but are human really to blame here and more sandies to

come? the climate change debate up next. [ woman ] ring. ring. progresso. i just served my mother-in-law your chicken noodle soup but she loved it so much... i told her it was homemade. everyone tells a little white lie now and then. but now she wants my recipe [ clears his throat ] [ softly ] she's right behind me isn't she? [ male announcer ] progresso. you gotta taste this soup. who have used androgel 1%, there's big news. presenting androgel 1.62%. both are used to treat men with low testosterone. androgel 1.62% is from the makers of the number one prescribed testosterone replacement therapy. it raises your testosterone levels, and... is concentrated, so you could use less gel. and with androgel 1.62%, you can save on your monthly prescription. [ male announcer ] dosing and application sites between these products differ. women and children should avoid contact with application sites.

discontinue androgel and call your doctor if you see unexpected signs of early puberty in a child, or, signs in a woman which may include changes in body hair or a large increase in acne, possibly due to accidental exposure. men with breast cancer or who have or might have prostate cancer, and women who are, or may become pregnant or are breast feeding should not use androgel. serious side effects include worsening of an enlarged prostate, possible increased risk of prostate cancer, lower sperm count, swelling of ankles, feet, or body, enlarged or painful breasts, problems breathing during sleep, and blood clots in the legs. tell your doctor about your medical conditions and medications, especially insulin, corticosteroids, or medicines to decrease blood clotting. talk to your doctor today about androgel 1.62% so you can use less gel. log on now to androgeloffer.com and you could pay as little as ten dollars a month for androgel 1.62%. what are you waiting for? this is big news. [ male announcer ] the way it moves.

the way it cleans. everything about the oral-b power brush is simply revolutionary. oral-b power brushes oscillate, rotate and even pulsate to gently loosen and break up that sticky plaque with more brush movements than manual brushes and even up to 50% more than leading sonic technology brushes for a superior clean. oral-b power brushes. go to oralb.com for the latest offers.

>> there has been a series of extreme weather incidents.

anyone that's not a political statement, that is a factual statement. anyone who says that there's not a dramatic change in weather patterns, i think is denying reality. there may be denial over what caused hurricane sandy, but no denying its effect. absolute devastation. the storm surge that battered the jersey shore in lower manhattan was dramatic, but climate scientists say, get ready. there are more sandys sure to come. what is also sure to come is more bitter fighting over climate change. mitt romney drew a laugh at the national convention in august when he said this. >> president obama promised to begin to slow the rise of the oceans, and heal the planet.

>> former president bill clinton hit back at those comments this week. >> he ridiculed the president, ridiculed the president for his efforts to fight global warming and economically benphyllo phye ways. he said, oh, you're going to turn back the seas. and my part of america, we would like it if someone could have done that yesterday. >> bloomberg business week had its own not so subtle message to nay sayers featuring this cover story and in a surprise move michael bloomberg endorsed president obama thursday saying the president is a strong leader on global climate change. professor of geosciences at princeton university. he has been studying climate science for three decades now. good morning. thank you for being here. you live in lower manhattan. you saw the storm's devastation first hand. were you surprised by sandy's

magnitude? >> well orve, of course, i was surprised. even though i do this kind of work professionally. sandy was not caused by global warming, but it was made worse. believe me, it's no laughing matter. this situation is going to get worse as long as the world continues to warm and the world is going to continue to warm as long as we keep burning primarily coal oil and natural gas for energy. that's putting carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. that's pumping up the temperature of the earth and causing the seas to rise. >> let's talk specifically about manmade climate change. how much do you blame that? >> climate change, as i said, didn't cause sandy, but it made it worse. climate changed caused, for instance, the sea level at new york's battery to be a foot higher than it was a century ago. that made the storm surge worse, that increased the flooding of the subways. they have brought the seas to the point where they knocked out

electricity. i was without electricity for the last four days. in fact, only at 4:30 this morning did my electricity and heat go on for the first time. so, we're in a situation where we haven't been prepared. what we've got to do is cut emissions to slow the warming well, at the same time being smarter about defending ourselves from the rising sea. >> we hear so much about sea ice and just over the past 30 years, 1.3 million square miles of that arctic sea ice has melted. if you take a look here, that's about 42% of the lower 48% of the u.s. states. how soon could we see all that arctic ice gone, do you think, and what are the implications of something like that happening? >> always be arctic ice in the winter, but summer arctic ice which was projected to more or less disappear by the end of the century actually may disappear some time within the next few decades. we don't, we aren't sure what the implications of that are for storm patterns, but there is a theory that actually sandy's

trajectory towards the united states was partly determined by the fact that sea ice had disappeared early this summer and that caused what is called a blocking high to steer the storm right in our direction. as i said, that speculation we're going to have to learn more about it and what we're sure of, it looks like the arctic is going to open up to shipping, for instance. a lot of geo political implications and a lot more exploitation of resources up there which can have both positive and negative effects, for instance, destroying the wild aspect of the arctic as a natural eco system. >> new york city is a city shaped by water, built on water, it is an island. 520 miles of coastline. it is very vulnerable. on top of that, the city was designed before the sea levels rose a foot. you've actually been warning, from what i understand, city officials for years about this and what might happen in terms of something like sandy. so, what kind of response did you get? i'm just curious. >> in new york city mayor

bloomberg and governor cuomo, a lot of talk about protecting the city from storms like this. but, unfortunately, the action has fallen far short of the talk. for instance, while some simple measures had been taken over the last few decades, there were still subway entrances which were too low and which, therefore, the storm surge was able to go down and swamp the subways and stop the system. the electoral power plants, for instance, it one feeding my house, the distribution stations were down by the river instead of up in safe territory where they should have been moved. this is an old city and a lot of infrastructure was prepared before sea level rose. but, hey, we're in a new world. sea level is rising. it's not going to stop for quite a while, even if we ged the emissions under control. we have to redesign the city to be more habitable in a warming world. that's not just for new york, that's everywhere along the coast worldwide.

>> yeah, there was some talk about levees. would levees help a city like new york city? >> there are two ideas. one is a storm barrier, of the sort they have in london on it the thames which is raised into place every time there is a storm threat. it is expensive, it would cost about $7 billion, i understand. but it is doable and i think the discussion needs to begin in a serious way about planning and see figure we really need it. i think it actually is probably a wise idea. over the longer term we have a bigger problem if one or both of the polar ice sheets start to disintegrate faster, it could be we need a permanent sea wall we whether than just a temporary storm barrier. a lot of things that could be done cheap, easy and started right away like moving the subway entrances and moving the

electoral system from the water. less talk from our political leaders and more action. >> you don't want to be left a sitting duck in manhattan or anywhere else, quite frankly. nice to have you on the program, thank you. >> glad to be here. voters waiting in line two, three, even four hours to cast their ballots in one of the election's most crucial swing states and things could be even worse today. we'll tell you why. ♪ ♪ ♪ [ male announcer ] some day, your life will flash before your eyes. ♪ make it worth watching. ♪ the new 2013 lexus ls. an entirely new pursuit.

as part of a heart healthy diet. that's true. ...but you still have to go to the gym. ♪ the one and only, cheerios [ man ] hello!!!! hello!!!! [ all ] ohh! that is crazy! are you kidding me? let me see! oh! what! that's insane! noooo! mr. woodson? oh hello! hello! [ whistles ] hello! [ all ] hello! [ coach ] caleb, i've got someone i want you to meet. hello. [ male announcer ] at&t. the nation's largest 4g network. covering 3,000 more 4g cities and towns than verizon. rethink possible. [ male announcer ] the way it moves. the way it cleans. everything about the oral-b power brush is simply revolutionary. oral-b power brushes oscillate, rotate and even pulsate to gently loosen and break up that sticky plaque

with more brush movements than manual brushes and even up to 50% more than leading sonic technology brushes for a superior clean. oral-b power brushes. go to oralb.com for the latest offers.

we're going to take you live now. this the plantation, florida, where you can see there pretty long lines. people waiting to vote there. this is one of the most crucial swing states. we don't have to tell you, and early voting actually ends there today. >> the rush to cast their last-minute ballots, thousands of floridians are waiting in very long slow-moving lines. >> you actually voted this way in early voting in '08 in florida? >> yeah. in 2008 i was living in jacksonville at the time, and i waited in line, and it only took about an hour, and i thought an hour in line. this is forever. >> nothing like this. >> nothing like this where people are waiting this long. >> we know there's been a lot of issues, a lot of talk about this whole early voting situation. the republican-dominated state legislature, you may recall, reduces the number of early voting days from 14 to 8 so that could be one reason why these lines are really, really getting

long, and obviously the republican governor there is taking a lot of heat for that, and some of his critics have said it's a push by gop to lower the voter turnout. >> yeah. >> so it's interesting. >> i don't think this conversation will end on election day. >> we'll actually be talking more about it with john zarella who is there with those voters, and we'll talk with him coming up in the 9:00 hour here, 9:00 eastern. all right. so long voting lines, countless campaign ads, some americans have just had enough of the 2012 election, especially this little girl. >> i'm tired -- i'm tired of baronk obama and mitt romney. >> that's why you're crying. it will be over soon, abby. ...lean roasted chicken... and a creamy broth mmm i can still see you. [ male announcer ] progresso. you gotta taste this soup. with less chronic osteoarthritis pain. imagine living your life with less chronic low back pain. imagine you, with less pain.

cymbalta can help. cymbalta is fda-approved to manage chronic musculoskeletal pain. one non-narcotic pill a day, every day, can help reduce this pain. tell your doctor right away if your mood worsens, you have unusual changes in mood or behavior or thoughts of suicide. antidepressants can increase these in children, teens, and young adults. cymbalta is not approved for children under 18. people taking maois or thioridazine or with uncontrolled glaucoma should not take cymbalta. taking it with nsaid pain relievers, aspirin, or blood thinners may increase bleeding risk. severe liver problems, some fatal, were reported. signs include abdominal pain and yellowing skin or eyes. tell your doctor about all your medicines, including those for migraine and while on cymbalta, call right away if you have high fever, confusion and stiff muscles or serious allergic skin reactions like blisters, peeling rash, hives, or mouth sores to address possible life-threatening conditions. talk about your alcohol use, liver disease and before you reduce or stop cymbalta. dizziness or fainting may occur upon standing. ask your doctor about cymbalta. imagine you with less pain.

cymbalta can help. go to cymbalta.com to learn about a free trial offer. to bring you a low-priced medicare prescription drug plan. ♪ with a low national plan premium... ♪ ...and copays as low as one dollar... ♪ ...saving on your medicare prescriptions is easy. ♪ so you're free to focus on the things that really matter. call humana at 1-800-808-4003. or go to walmart.com for details.

>> the presidential election in the battle for the 4-year-old vote. both candidates lose. just ask this little girl. >> reporter: are you suffering from election burnout? >> i'm barack obama, and i approve this message. >> i'm mitt romney. >> let me respond. >> reporter: has it left you feeling as cranky as a 4-year-old? >> i'm tired -- i'm tired of baronk obama and mitt romney. >> reporter: that's why you're crying? >> oh. >> reporter: it will be over soon, abby. >> reporter: abigail evans hit a nerf. i feel you, abby. sweet baby, i know how you feel. abigail and her mom were pulling into the grocery store parking lot listening to npr when abby started to cry. >> the election will be over soon, okay? >> okay. >> she started telling me and i was like oh, my god. >> reporter: abby's mom hit record. >> the little kid saying what everyone wants to say, actually being able to cry about it.

>> reporter: or as "time" magazine put it we are all abigail evans. maybe we couldn't all reel off the planets the way this smart ft. collins, colorado can. >> mercury, venus, earth, mars, saturn, neptune and urbanus. >> reporter: since the radio was turned to npr they apologized. dear little girl, sorry we made you cry, but abby seems to be a fan. >> this is npr. >> reporter: funny thing is that abigail's family doesn't even have a tv so abby hasn't been subjected -- >> when a president doesn't tell the truth. >> reporter: -- to all those campaign commercials. just think what mitt romney might do as president. other little girls have gone viral for crying, crying over justin bieber. >> because i love justin bieber. >> reporter: crying after the vikings lost to the packers. >> because the packers won. >> the packers won?